Bumper Issue for Our 30Th European Ti994a Treffen
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TI-99/4A User Group UK – TI*MES Newsletter s TI*MES Volume 2, Number 5. Xmas Issue December 2015 Bumper Issue for our 30th European TI994a Treffen On Friday Saturday and Sunday of October 2nd 3rd and 4th 2015 we had our yearly European TI Treffen but this year an important 30th Anniversary Treff held here in my home town of Crewe in the County of Cheshire, the Cover picture was taken in the Gladstone Conference Room the largest of the rooms in the Best Western Crewe Arms Hotel, just across from Crewe Railway Station and was very easy access for people coming by Plane from abroad less than 1 hour from Manchester airport direct to hotel by Train The Front Page picture shows 23 of the 24 attendees. 1 TI-99/4A User Group UK – TI*MES Newsletter TI*MES-Magazine A Twice A Year Publication of the T.I.U.G.U.K (Texas Instruments User Group of the United Kingdom) IN THIS ISSUE PAGE ARTICLE AUTHOR 1, 3 30th Anniversary 2015 European Treff (a review) David Caine 2 Menu David Caine 14 Brief Thoughts on 2015 Crewe Treff Stephen Shaw 26 Advanced Passenger Train (brief history) Wikipedia 32 Secret Bunker Story from 1966 Hack Green Brochure 34 Attendees at Crewe Treff David Caine 35 Treffen Profit David Caine 36 Chicago 2015 International Meeting Berry Harmsen 39 F18A VGA Conversion (a workshop review) David Caine 43 2016 UK AGM Trevor Stevens 44 Next Year’s European Treffen 2016 Berry Harmsen 45 Module Library Francesco Lama 47 Membership Details David Caine 48 Board Of The TIUGUK Berry Harmsen and David Caine Layout and Editorial of this issue by David Caine and Berry Harmsen The last day of publishing articles for TI*MES volume 2 number 6 will be May 20th 2016 This next issue of TI*MES magazine will appear In the middle of June 2016 With final updates for your trip to Copenhagen Denmark ======================================================== Merry Christmas vrolijk kerstfeest Fröhliche Weihnachten buon Natale glædelig jul 2 TI-99/4A User Group UK – TI*MES Newsletter THE EUROPEAN TI994a TREFFEN CONTINUED from Page One TUESDAY 29th The week started the day after Gerhard arrived, as he was staying in the Hotel over a full week , he arrived at the Crewe Arms on Monday the 28th of September and I 125 INTERCITY APT on PERMANENT DISPLAY in CREWE went to meet up with him in the Hotel on the Tuesday morning, it is fairly easy for me to get to the Hotel even though I don’t drive, I live about two miles away from the Hotel and I arrived on Tuesday morning by bicycle, with Gerhard speaking and understanding very good English and me not understanding a word of BEST WESTERN CREWE ARMS HOTEL FROM CAR PARK German, we greeted one another and set out a plan for the day, and I was able to show him around Crewe town centre we did go to the railway museum, which was not technically open and even though the indoor museum was closed we were able to walk around the grounds THURSDAY EVENING AROUND RECEPTION FIREPLACE and were able to view our first high speed tilting train from the 1980s the InterCity 125 APT, and there IN MEMORIUM FOR TONY KNERR 30th ANNIVERSARY BALLOONS was also a miniature narrow gauge railway for visitors, when open, anyway we had our lunch at the large Tesco Supermarket which was pretty good and Gerhard purchased a weekly Arriva Bus ticket which came in use going back to the Hotel at about 5pm. 3 TI-99/4A User Group UK – TI*MES Newsletter WEDNESDAY 30th We got together again at about 11am and boarded a bus to Sandbach about six miles away and a very historic Old English Market Town which was granted a Royal Charter by Queen Elizabeth 1st in 1579 , it was most interesting walking around on a lovely TREVOR’s OPENING SPEECH AT 3pm ON SATURDAY Summers day and we ended up in The Black Bear public house on the Stone Column Square which Gerhard was very interest in as they held live music bands every week, we got back in Crewe by bus about 5pm, and there I had to leave Gerhard until Thursday evening to greet some more of the TI group as quite a WOLFGANG’s FIRST DEMONSTRATION ON FRI DAY few arrived that afternoon and I had to pack all of my TI Equipment for transportation on the Friday Morning, THURSDAY 1st I was packing all of my TI gear transferring from attic to garage ready for transporting by car to the Crewe Arms , this consisted of a console with stand alone TI disk controller, 32k boxcar memory and twin WATCHING DEMONSTRATION IN GLADSTONE ROOM 3 ½” Cumana disk drives and another FRIDAY EVENING DINNER IN BROCKLEBANK PUB FRIDAY EVENING DINNER IN BROCKLEBANK PUB console with cf7+ sidecar and two consoles with two expansion box’s with two Myarc HFDCs and four 5 ¼” 80 track and four 51/4” 40 track and four3 ½” floppy drives also two 5 ¼” and two 3 ½” MFM hard drives, and with leads and cables took the best part of a day 4 TI-99/4A User Group UK – TI*MES Newsletter especially the weight of the expansion box’s. Later on that day on going to the Hotel to meet up with a few more Tiers I was informed by Rachael that it was okay to bring my equipment on the Thursday evening, so after our get NORMAN WITH SECOND DEMONSTRATION on SATURDAY together in the Hotel Foyer I went back home and with my Son Adrian and Daughter Caroline loaded our cars with my equipment and Anniversary balloons and arrived at the Hotel about 7pm, unloaded all items into a corner of the Gladstone function Room until the following morning and returned home with the knowledge that items were ERMANNO WITH THIRD DEMONSTRATION on SATURDAY already there. FRIDAY 2nd All started with me, my Son Adrian and Daughter Caroline arriving at Hotel at 10am to arrange the Gladstone Room into how best would suit our group, 9 tables were put around the perimeter with about 20 chairs on the inside and was informed by Rachael that if any extra were needed just to get them STEPHEN WITH FOURTH DEMONSTRATION on SATURDAY from next door conference room. Caroline got on with decorating the ALBERT ROOM for AWARDS DINNER on SATURDAY SANDRA and KLAUS ANNOWNCING THEIR ENGAGEMENT walls with bunting and balloons and I continued to unpack my TI gear and before long our guests were arriving, Klaus and Sandra, Trevor and Sue, Berry, Wolfgang, Norman , Ronald, Fred , 5 TI-99/4A User Group UK – TI*MES Newsletter Ermanno and Rosaline and Evan, most began placing their respective TI systems on tables and Klaus helping sort out my gear as there were quite a few boxes, not only with my stuff but a lot of Trevor’s items for Sale and Auction. With installations and decorations over, KLAUS with the FIFTH DEMONSTRATION on SATURDAY Caroline and Adrian departed for home and left us to it and before long it was 1pm and most left the conference room for the Hotel restaurant for lunch, which was buffet style and I was told I could now register for my three nights stay at the Hotel, which I did and after an excellent two course meal, we were back to the Gladstone Room at 3pm for the THE EDGAR MAUK AWARDS on SATURDAY official opening of our European Treff by Trevor and then fun with the TI and contacts for an hour until our first Demonstration by Wolfgang and then after fun again with the TI until our short trek at 6.30pm to the Brewers Faire Brocklebank Pub which incidentally had BUSY CONFERENCE ROOM on SATURDAY been under new management for the past couple of months and was only 100 metres distanc e from Hotel where our first ANNIVERSARY CUPS for PURCHASE ANNIVERSARY CAKE to be EATEN fourtee n guests had arrived and enjoyed their evening meal and drinks, we were situated in a fairly private area of the pub and a good night was had by all but was tainted by poor service and mediocre tasting meals, anyway we arrived back at base about 10.30pm and one or two still had to check in and a few of us were back in the Conference Room for another 6 TI-99/4A User Group UK – TI*MES Newsletter hour until finally calling it a day and turning in and locking the door for an end to a fruitful first day. SATURDAY 3RD After an excellent buffet style breakfast in Hotel restaurant it was back into the Gladstone conference room for our Second Demonstration by Norman and then our Third Demonstration by Ermanno and then Fun and TI Sales for an hour until 1pm then again in hotel CUTTING of ANNIVERSARY CAKE restaurant for buffet style Lunch which was as good as ever,. Group leaders and concerned guests while lunching discussed strategy for next European meetings and was confirmed by Jens and Vera that next Copenhagen in Denmark with more details in Summer issue of TI*MES, but if you are thinking about EVAN at RONALDS TI playing BUCK ROGERS going, I will be sending e-mails over the first few months of next year as details are nearing completion. Not confirmed yet but Ermanno seems to think 2017 European Treff could well be in Rome (watch this space) After lunch back into conference ONE of MANY ANNIVERSARY PANDANTS ERMANNO with DEMONSTRATION room at 3pm we had our Fourth Demonstration by our very own(what can I say about this man that hasn’t already been said), One of the stalwarts of the original early1980s TI KLAUS with 3D CONSOLE REPLICAS community here in the UK.